When buying a new home or redecorating your existing home, personal transition is happening. This can be overwhelming, as well as being an exciting time of new beginnings.
The changes require a deeper look at your needs and wants. A release from the past to a shift into new directions. Often we have outgrown furniture or accessories we have lived with, but hold on to them without realizing or thinking. It’s an opportunity to honestly assess what pieces are broken, worn out or no longer fit your personality and lifestyle.
Moving your life into a new environment is a perfect time to see your furniture and possessions with fresh eyes. A time to evaluate what has served you in the past and redesign how you want to live going forward. Purging makes space for design discovery and imagination.
Concerns and fear about the high cost of purchasing new pieces are often unfounded. You may not need to replace them at all.
Every area on the floor or space on a wall does not have to be filled. Less is more! An example of this is when beginning a design project it is a good idea to remove pictures from small walls! Leave more empty space there and everywhere. Aldo, using larger pieces (in dimension, not necessarily scale) is a great design trick to create drama and spend less money.
Repurpose! Every design choice doesn’t need to be expensive. When carefully thought out, you will realize you have options. First consider the pieces you already have. Envision them used differently. Choose what to keep. Changing color, finish or adding a new detail such as hardware, lamp shade or pillow can add interesting focal points. Paint a piece of furniture an accent color and/or add molding, beads or metal accents. Thereby renewing the pieces you already own you have created a unique and personalized style.
The best way to see your furniture and accessories differently is to place them in different rooms than they were previously. Don’t do the obvious. Think “out of the box” or better yet have no box and have fun. Decorating is often taken too seriously. When you realize there are no “have to’s” in decorating, you can relax and freely envision different furniture arrangements. For example, turning a dining table just 45 degrees can change the flow of the area. Or move the dining room furniture into the family room or living room and the previous dining room or kitchen eating area can become a more intimate sitting room. After all where do family and guests hang out?
To avoid interior design mistakes:
- Live in your new home for at least a month before making any design decisions.
- Before buying new furniture place your existing furniture to emulate the new look. Experiment with what you have.
- Don’t do everything at once.
- Consider your life style, not the obvious that the rooms were intended for.
- Explore using room layouts differently to suit your feelings.
- Don’t duplicate function in rooms.
- Don’t buy because something is on sale.
- Most important, love everything you bring into your home.
The way you live and choices you make can affect your happiness and wellbeing. Make sure your environment supports the lifestyle you want to live today.
Remember, rooms have no feelings, YOU do!
T
hrough her years of experience Barbara developed an interior design approach that she shares in her book, The Bajaro Method: Rooms Have No Feelings, You Do!, and has now expanded The Bajaro Method to include personal branding called “Living In Your Colors.”
Barbara is the Past President of International Furnishings and Design Association & Women At The Top, Allied Member of American Society of Interior Designers. Her company, Design Dimensions, has been in business for over 25 years. Barbara has had her own column in the Tribune family of Newspapers and the City Sun Times. She has appeared in magazines and on HGTV, and other television and radio programs. Barbara has presented seminars about The Bajaro Method and certified design professionals in The Bajaro Method™. Barbara can be reached through BarbaraKaplan.com or work: 480-998-5088 cell: 602-292-3073
